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Referrer page refresh and real-time Google Discover

Parse.ly has released important improvements to referral traffic, especially from Google. These updates will make it easier to distinguish between Google Search and Google Discover, track emerging referral patterns and react quickly to traffic spikes.

The new look of the Referrers Page as of Oct. 15, 2025.

What’s new

  • The Referrers page (located within the Traffic menu) will split real-time Google traffic into two sources: Google Search and Google Discover.
  • The Referrers page will include tabs for overview, categories and groups to better organize traffic insights.
  • The Referrer Groups tab will include two new groups that preserve historical consistency with previous tracking:
    • Google (Discover & Search): combines Google Search and Google Discover, maintaining the same aggregate view of Google traffic used before this update.
    • Legacy Search Referrers: Contains all sources that were included in the Search referrer category prior to October 15, 2025.
  • The Referrers page will include new referrer categories for Aggregators and AI referrals.
  • The Referrers categories tab will include a new stacked chart to showcase referrer category trends over time.
The new Google Discover referrer page.
The categories tab of the Referrers page, displaying a stacked chart of referrers.
The Search category page, displaying the full list of referral sources in the Search category.

Why this matters

  • You will be able to take advantage of trending stories and spikes from Google Discover as they happen.
  • You will have a clearer view of shifting traffic patterns over time.

Last updated: October 24, 2025